An air particle precipitator and a method of air filtration include a housing unit; a first conductor in the housing unit; a second conductor in the housing unit; and a carbon nanotube grown on the second conductor. Preferably, the first conductor is positioned opposite to the second conductor. The air particle precipitator further includes an electric field source adapted to apply an electric field to the housing unit. Moreover, the carbon nanotube is adapted to ionize gas in the housing unit, wherein the ionized gas charges gas particulates located in the housing unit, and wherein the first conductor is adapted to trap the charged gas particulates. The air particle precipitator may further include a metal layer over the carbon nanotube.